There are numerous medical conditions where changing the color of the eyes is a suitable treatment. These include fixing heterochromia, protecting the eyes of the albinos from the harmful effects of the sunlight, covering up the defects of the iris such as coloboma, severe iris atrophies, and iridoschisis. There is also a need for eye color changes for cosmetic purposes.
An opening in the front of a human eye is called a pupil and it permits entry of light into the eyeball, through the lens of the eye and onto the retina. The size of the pupil is controlled by an iris. The iris has a natural color which is considered the color of the eye.
The state of existing technology in eye implantation of iris overlays in the anterior chamber is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,025,781 ('781 patent) for an artificial soft iris diaphragm implant. The '781 patent diaphragm is a smooth, flexible and foldable material forming a main portion. In contrast, there is no corresponding main portion in the present implant because it is structured with arc sections that are non-planar, arranged in a non-smooth pattern that enables specific and essential improvements to the performance of the implant.
The '781 patent teaches implants that contain “flap portions” that are “integrally formed with the main portion to provide the diaphragm with a unitary construction.” The “main portion” in the '781 patent is “smooth.” In contrast, there is no main portion in the present invention because the implant comprises multiple non-uniform and non-planar components in the thicker support arc sections and thinner passage arc sections. These sections differ significantly in thickness and purpose, and define a structure that is non-planar, non-smooth, and non-uniform.
A functional significance of the arc sections of the present invention is that they significantly diminish the contact surface between the implant and the iris, thereby diminishing the postoperative inflammation related to friction between the implant and the iris, reducing the possibility of glaucoma and also preventing the desquamation of the pigment cells into the anterior chamber.
Unlike the '781 patent, only the much thicker support arc sections of the present invention have auricles that extend from the support arc sections of the diaphragm. These auricles that extend from the support arc sections are not an integral part of the passage arc sections of the diaphragm. Unlike the '781 patent, the present invention provides no uniformity between the support arc sections and the passage arc sections.